It was Lawrence’s first birthday today. My grandmother had two children in her early twenties and two in her thirties. She swore her forties were her favourite decade; I’m not sure what that says about early years child rearing back in the 40s/50s! Here are my observations and learnings from raising a baby from 0 to 1 in my mid thirties, the third time round:

It’s half term, by today (it being Wednesday) the kids are probably starting to itch for something parent-inspired to do. I say put that Prittstick away! Save that jigsaw for tomorrow and instead get them making their own (and your) dinner. These three recipes provide lots of short term concentration span activities. There’s breaking an egg, there’s crumbling feta cheese, there’s measuring out herbs, there’s scrunching and shaping koftas. No time to get bored, oh no.

Then in the 20 minutes they take to cook there’s shredding (with supervision) vegetables, mixing up coleslaw and blitzing hummus. If your kids are anything like mine they love the opportunity to press the buttons of grown up kitchen equipment. Obviously, watch them like hawks. I know I don’t need to say that but I feel duty bound, in a Mum like fashion.

You can watch the recipe being made on ITV’s This Morning by clicking here.

Summer is coming so it’s time for a lemon and coconut cake. If coconut isn’t your thing then make a simple buttercream filling instead. I’ve kept the coconut away from the main cake as I know some folks aren’t keen on it. I however am a coconut fiend.

This recipe first appeared on ITV’s This Morning. You can find a video of the recipe being made here as well as the full recipe.

I feel I could be in danger of teaching grandmother to suck eggs. But I’m ploughing on through anyway. It’s pancake day, or rather Shrove Tuesday. The day to use up all the fat and eggs in the house before the first day of Lent.

Now I am pretty sure most of you have a pancake recipe already. Perhaps some of you are expert flippers. If you’re not in possession of the perfect recipe or the right wrist action then read on. This recipe works for me every time. You do need a non stick frying pan though. And nerves of steel. Expert flipping is all about nerves of steel.

This recipe plus my chocolate pancakes recipe and my spinach & ricotta filling recipe are all here too as well as a video of me flipping pancakes with the boys.

Whisk well with a handheld whisk until the batter is smooth and thick.

Add the rest of the milk in thirds, whisking well after each addition.

Add the water and melted butter, whisk well, cover and refrigerate for 30 minutes or up to 2 hours. (This stage is important as it makes the pancakes more tender).

Heat ½ tsp of oil in a non-stick frying pan (approx. 28cm wide) on a very high heat. Don’t be tempted to add more oil as it deep fries the edges making them thicker and rubbery.

Hold the hot frying pan away from the heat then take a ladle (or use a jug) to pour just enough pancake batter into the frying pan to thinly cover the base. Tilt the pan to help the batter run over the base of the frying pan. The first one will always be a bit thicker than the rest – it’s a learning process to see just how much batter you need to spoon in.

Place the frying pan back on the heat and wait until the edges start to curl and the centre shows large bubbles – this takes about 40 – 60 seconds. Then shake the pan a little to see if the pancake comes loose. If it doesn’t use a slice or palate knife to loosen the edges.

You can either use the slice/palate knife to flip the pancake over or you can have a go at tossing the pancake in the air to turn it. To toss it make sure all small children and animals are out of the way (!) and hold the frying pan away from your body, pointing downwards at about 45 degrees. With a quick hand movement push the frying pan forwards and upwards which will push the pancake off the edge of the pan furthest away from you. Try and catch the pancake!

Don’t worry if it falls on the floor or flips over folded. Pancake tossing takes a bit of practice!

Fry the other side of the pancake back on the high heat for about 30 seconds, then slip the pancake onto a plate.

Add another ½ tsp of oil to the pan and repeat until all the pancake batter is used up. You can keep the pancakes warm by separating them with non-stick baking parchment and placing them in a low oven whilst you fry the rest.

I’m a mum of 3 boys, a cookbook writer and also a finalist on the 2011 Great British Bake Off.
I’ve decided to record the recipes I use, partly to save them somewhere and partly in case someone else might like to use them...
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